BMC plans city’s base map to track services, amenities

Dissatisfied with the limitations of the base map provided by the National Informatics Centre (NIC), the civic body has decided to prepare its own digital base map of the city, on which it plans to plot all civic utilities and amenities.

Dissatisfied with the limitations of the base map provided by the National Informatics Centre (NIC), the civic body has decided to prepare its own digital base map of the city, on which it plans to plot all civic utilities and amenities. It has received a proposal from a private firm for the project, and is in the process of granting a formal approval to it.

The exercise will cost an estimated Rs78 lakh.

In 2007, the NIC had provided the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) a base map for the city. However, civic officials claim that the NIC had imposed stringent conditions on its use, which made it difficult to effectively utilise it. Hence, the BMC has decided to do away with the NIC map.

Once ready, the map will provide – at a click of the mouse – information about amenities and services provided by the civic body and utilities like water pipelines, sewage lines and storm water drains. This data can be accessed by citizens and employees alike. The project will help improve civic planning and also increase transparency.

Civic officials said that the accuracy of the planned base map would be so high, that even a street pole can be viewed distinctly.

The map will be prepared using the latest satellite imagery available with the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) in Hyderabad, according to civic sources. Information plotted on the map will be updated regularly. “If you click on any road on the map, you will get all relevant information, for instance, when the road was last repaired, what kind of road it is, its length, and information of ongoing projects on the road, if any,” an official from the civic body said.

“Such digitisation will aid better planning,” he added.

Confirming the move, deputy municipal commissioner (information technology) Prakash Patil said: “We couldn’t wait any longer for the NIC nod, since crucial projects like mapping of our utilities are stuck. We have thus decided to create our own base map of the city.”

Patil said that private firm NIIT GIS would conduct the mapping and the process will take around a year.